If you’re a huge fan of energy drinks, you might want to listen up: a case study out today shows the perils of drinking too many of these caffeine-rich beverages.
An otherwise healthy 50-year-old man in the UK developed a stroke likely caused by his habit of eight energy drinks per day, according to his doctors. Though the man ultimately recovered from the injury, he continues to have some lingering symptoms years later. The doctors say his case should offer an important lesson that these drinks aren’t necessarily harmless.
“Energy drinks are not currently widely seen as dangerous for cardiovascular risks—they have been discussed because of their effect on sleep and concentration, but the public has little awareness of the more hidden risks they pose,” study author Martha Doyle, a stroke doctor at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, told Gizmodo.
No other identifiable cause
According to the paper, published Tuesday in BMJ Case Reports, the man visited the hospital with sudden numbness on his left side and general unsteadiness. He also had a remarkably high blood pressure reading of 254/150. For context, 120/80 is normal blood pressure, while 180/120 and above is recognized as a “hypertensive crisis.” Tests soon confirmed he had experienced a mild stroke.
The man was hospitalized for three days. He was discharged with medications to lower his blood pressure and prevent further stroke. Over the next three months of follow-up visits, he appeared to make an excellent functional recovery, though he continued to have some numbness. More worryingly, he still had incredibly high blood pressure despite his medication, and he was even readmitted to the hospital as a result. He was then given more antihypertensives.
Finally, during a more detailed examination of his lifestyle, the man disclosed to doctors that he loved energy drinks. On average, he consumed eight drinks a day, each containing 160 milligrams of caffeine per serving. That amounts to about 1.3 grams of caffeine per day—over three times the maximum recommended dose (400 milligrams) for a typical adult.
The man was fit and healthy for his age, with no major stroke risk factors like a history of smoking or current alcohol drinking. The doctors’ many tests also failed to find any clear precipitating cause for his stroke, other than his very high blood pressure. So given all that, it’s almost certain the man’s energy drink habit played at least a part in spiking his blood pressure and subsequently triggering his stroke.
“We attribute this patient’s stroke to the effects of his energy drink consumption because through thorough investigations using multiple diagnostic methods we ruled out any other identifiable cause,” Coyle said.
Fortunately, the man agreed to quit energy drinks for good. Within a week, his blood pressure started to return to normal, and it remained healthy after he was weaned off the antihypertensives (yet more evidence that the drinks were to blame). Further follow-up visits showed that he made a complete recovery with no further strokes, and eight years later, his blood pressure continues to be normal.
That said, he does still experience some residual numbness to this day.
“I obviously wasn’t aware of the dangers drinking energy drinks were causing to myself, (I) have been left with numbness (in my) left hand side hand and fingers, foot and toes even after eight years,” the man wrote in a patient perspective accompanying the report.
A needed warning
The doctors say that there are several reasons why energy drinks can raise the risk of stroke and other cardiovascular problems, mostly tied to the high amounts of caffeine and sometimes sugar found in them.
Aside from causing a chronic rise in blood pressure, for instance, too much caffeine might cause a sudden narrowing of blood vessels in the brain or trigger an arrhythmia (an irregular heartbeat). Some ingredients popular in these drinks, such as taurine and ginseng, might also amplify the effects of caffeine, while others like guarana can contain high amounts of undisclosed caffeine.
There have been some high-profile cases of cardiovascular disease tied to energy drinks. Between 2022 and 2023, for instance, at least two heart-related deaths in the U.S. were linked to Panera Bread’s highly caffeinated “Charged Lemonade” energy drinks. By mid-2024, Panera had removed the item from its menu, and earlier this summer, the company settled the remaining lawsuits over these deaths and other reported injuries.
But the report authors say that—much like their patient—the public still isn’t generally aware of the health risks these drinks can carry. And it’s possible that these risks could warrant increased regulation of these products or the advertising for them. Compared to something like alcohol, they note, energy drinks are frequently marketed to younger kids.
“Whether health authorities should be actively intervening we cannot definitively conclude from our reporting of just this case,” Coyle said. “However it would be beneficial to get this out there so if any similar cases exist they can be brought to attention. And also for the public, they have the right to know the risks of what they are consuming.”
Speaking as someone who loves his morning and sometimes afternoon coffee, I’ll certainly be a bit more proactive in tracking my daily caffeine consumption from now on.
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![These Are the 12 Ikea Products the Company’s Design Chief Personally OwnsThe Svarva lamp can be twisted into different shapes.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Svarva Floor Lamp“Some stuff I did myself, like this one. The Svarva lamp we made with the design group Front for the PS 2009 collection. They were quite newly established and so we did an armchair and this lamp. The desire was to do a wooden turned lamp, but you should also be able to twist it, articulate it.”“I felt that that would be very difficult to do. Along with a colleague in lighting at the time, I went to Hungary to this factory that was producing lamps for us. It was all metal tubes that they were doing, so we were a little bit hesitant whether they should be able to solve this. But they made some mock-ups based on the designer drawings. So we went there to have a look, and it was standing there. It was this floor lamp, and also a table lamp where the wooden beads were going in a circle and then up, like a snake.”“What we didn’t know was that next to the lamp factory was this factory that was doing the turned wooden beads, the small individual pieces that we put together. None of us knew that. It was just pure serendipity. So they were turning these wooden beads, and the lamp factory was putting them on the metal tubes, just like on a necklace. They had very little to do, so they were happy to get the business.”A Sinka Cabinet resides in Ejdemo’s hallway.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Sinka Cabinet“I have another favorite from that PS 2009 collection, it’s in my hallway. The PS Sinka, with the small drawers with a wooden base. Sinka means “dovetail” in Swedish, so the name explaining that construction.”“But the problem we had with this one was the packaging volume was too big. So what we did was each drawer is slightly shallower. So four drawers stack into each other. And four more drawers stack. There’s a little bit of a stopper in the back when you push them in, so they stop evenly at the front. There’s also a hidden compartment behind the smallest drawer. Really good drawers for all this stuff that is just lying around and getting in the way. In the top one I have all my keys that I no longer know where they go.”PS Jonsberg Vases“I have this vase from the PS collection to hold the cables [on my Samsung Serif TV]. It was a set, the Jonsberg vases by Hella Jongerius. There were four of them in different ceramic techniques. I had all four, but the terracotta one broke, which was a pity.” [It certainly is. These vases now sell secondhand for ,700 for a full set.]“They’re inspired by different regions, and the different techniques are beautiful. I use the big black one for toilet paper in one bathroom. It’s not disrespect for the design. It’s just such a good design to stand there, and it makes the bathroom beautiful, and it can fit the toilet roll. So, why have something like an ugly stick? It’s nice for that.”Pax Wardrobes“Pax. We have to mention Pax. I have Pax wardrobes in a few rooms, but also I’m a little bit peculiar. Like in the kitchen, these veneer doors have been sanded and hand-painted by me, just to make them fit my house, in my space. I repaint them sometimes.”Chipped Spraka pepper mills.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoSpraka Pepper Mills“I have these pepper mills. One for white pepper, one for black pepper. That was also in a PS collection. We did these with Marcus Arvonen. These pepper mills are beautiful, and these have been around for, like, 20 years as well. They are pretty tall. A smaller version came later on, but I like these.”“They have their chips, yes, but this just makes them nicer. It’s age. They’ve been around and are used every day. Everything has a little bit of imperfection. You can spend your whole life bothering about that, but there should be some imperfection in life. Fix it? Then something else needs fixing. It just moves. Leave it, be proud.”Where’s the Billy Bookcase or Kallax?“I don’t have a Billy in the house now. But there have been! Kallax? I have owned many. Brilliant piece. Really good for vinyl, because that’s the time they come from. I listen to a lot of vinyl.”#Ikea #Products #Companys #Design #Chief #Personally #Ownsikea,design,home,furniture,household,interviews](https://i2.wp.com/media.wired.com/photos/6a33ff12acc128b064d51d9c/master/w_1600%2Cc_limit/IKEA%2520PS%2520SVARVA%25202.jpg?ssl=1 "These Are the 12 Ikea Products the Company’s Design Chief Personally OwnsThe Svarva lamp can be twisted into different shapes.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Svarva Floor Lamp“Some stuff I did myself, like this one. The Svarva lamp we made with the design group Front for the PS 2009 collection. They were quite newly established and so we did an armchair and this lamp. The desire was to do a wooden turned lamp, but you should also be able to twist it, articulate it.”“I felt that that would be very difficult to do. Along with a colleague in lighting at the time, I went to Hungary to this factory that was producing lamps for us. It was all metal tubes that they were doing, so we were a little bit hesitant whether they should be able to solve this. But they made some mock-ups based on the designer drawings. So we went there to have a look, and it was standing there. It was this floor lamp, and also a table lamp where the wooden beads were going in a circle and then up, like a snake.”“What we didn’t know was that next to the lamp factory was this factory that was doing the turned wooden beads, the small individual pieces that we put together. None of us knew that. It was just pure serendipity. So they were turning these wooden beads, and the lamp factory was putting them on the metal tubes, just like on a necklace. They had very little to do, so they were happy to get the business.”A Sinka Cabinet resides in Ejdemo’s hallway.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Sinka Cabinet“I have another favorite from that PS 2009 collection, it’s in my hallway. The PS Sinka, with the small drawers with a wooden base. Sinka means “dovetail” in Swedish, so the name explaining that construction.”“But the problem we had with this one was the packaging volume was too big. So what we did was each drawer is slightly shallower. So four drawers stack into each other. And four more drawers stack. There’s a little bit of a stopper in the back when you push them in, so they stop evenly at the front. There’s also a hidden compartment behind the smallest drawer. Really good drawers for all this stuff that is just lying around and getting in the way. In the top one I have all my keys that I no longer know where they go.”PS Jonsberg Vases“I have this vase from the PS collection to hold the cables [on my Samsung Serif TV]. It was a set, the Jonsberg vases by Hella Jongerius. There were four of them in different ceramic techniques. I had all four, but the terracotta one broke, which was a pity.” [It certainly is. These vases now sell secondhand for ,700 for a full set.]“They’re inspired by different regions, and the different techniques are beautiful. I use the big black one for toilet paper in one bathroom. It’s not disrespect for the design. It’s just such a good design to stand there, and it makes the bathroom beautiful, and it can fit the toilet roll. So, why have something like an ugly stick? It’s nice for that.”Pax Wardrobes“Pax. We have to mention Pax. I have Pax wardrobes in a few rooms, but also I’m a little bit peculiar. Like in the kitchen, these veneer doors have been sanded and hand-painted by me, just to make them fit my house, in my space. I repaint them sometimes.”Chipped Spraka pepper mills.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoSpraka Pepper Mills“I have these pepper mills. One for white pepper, one for black pepper. That was also in a PS collection. We did these with Marcus Arvonen. These pepper mills are beautiful, and these have been around for, like, 20 years as well. They are pretty tall. A smaller version came later on, but I like these.”“They have their chips, yes, but this just makes them nicer. It’s age. They’ve been around and are used every day. Everything has a little bit of imperfection. You can spend your whole life bothering about that, but there should be some imperfection in life. Fix it? Then something else needs fixing. It just moves. Leave it, be proud.”Where’s the Billy Bookcase or Kallax?“I don’t have a Billy in the house now. But there have been! Kallax? I have owned many. Brilliant piece. Really good for vinyl, because that’s the time they come from. I listen to a lot of vinyl.”#Ikea #Products #Companys #Design #Chief #Personally #Ownsikea,design,home,furniture,household,interviews")
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